Candidates hip to online hangouts

Well, at least they try to be as they attempt to win the trust of the youngest voters

By AMY ROLPH, P-I REPORTER

Published 10:00 pm, Sunday, November 5, 2006

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The first of Sen. Maria Cantwell's television ads was posted a month ago on the popular YouTube site. It had been viewed more than 550 times. Not bad, until you consider that a video of a Welsh corgi walking on a floor got almost 1.7 million views. GOP Senate candidate Mike McGavick is one of many politicians using social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook to get his message out. McGavick's MySpace page features a picture of him playing a video game and reveals that Batman is one of his personal heroes. less

The first of Sen. Maria Cantwell's television ads was posted a month ago on the popular YouTube site. It had been viewed more than 550 times. Not bad, until you consider that a video of a Welsh corgi walking on ... more

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43rd District legislative candidate Jamie Pedersen has more than 3,300 friends on his MySpace page. Pedersen attributes his success partly to his efforts to get his message across online.

43rd District legislative candidate Jamie Pedersen has more than 3,300 friends on his MySpace page. Pedersen attributes his success partly to his efforts to get his message across online.

Candidates hip to online hangouts

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You don't have to be a highly trained member of the paparazzi to sneak a peek at Senate candidate Mike McGavick playing an arcade game at a pizza parlor.

The picture's right there on his MySpace profile, along with revealing bits of personal information that probably wouldn't come up in the course of a normal political debate.

He likes quirky TV comedies such as "The Office" and "Arrested Development."

All that and more are available on his online profile, set against a bright Republican-red backdrop, just like McGavick's yard signs.

One by one, lawmakers and campaign hopefuls are jumping on the online networking train, a stark contrast to the teens and 20-somethings who usually use the Web sites.

The young demographic of networking sites is exactly the point, said Cathy Allen, president of the Seattle-based political consultation firm Campaign Connections.

"The fact is that this is designed for people who are either in the business of technology or for young voters who are, of course, the most critical voters who don't vote," Allen said. "This kind of thing means that there is a mechanism for campaigning to this young generation."

Allen said last week that she had just logged off the popular video-sharing site YouTube, where she keeps tabs on newly launched campaign ads around the country.

"This has changed the way I campaign, and it has made the national picture a whole lot clearer," she said.

Capturing the attention of younger voters long has been the holy grail of political campaigns -- a mirage that is never realized at the polls.

Youth-oriented campaigns such as Rock the Vote had some success in getting young people to the polls for the 2004 presidential election; people between 18 and 24 years old voted at a rate of 47 percent, up 11 percentage points from 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

But 47 percent still proved to be a dismal outcome in an election in which the national average participation rate was 64 percent, and some analysts speculate that until politicians change their message and method of delivery, young people will remain apathetic.

Julie Sund, a spokeswoman for McGavick, said the MySpace page was the suggestion of students McGavick talked with at campaign stops.

"We launched it a few months ago as an attempt to reach out to younger voters," she said.

The campaign's Web site-based podcast also was an attempt to reach young people, Sund said.

State House candidate Jamie Pedersen, who is favored to win a 43rd District seat this week, used MySpace actively when campaigning against other Democratic candidates in the primary.

"It turned out to be an almost no-cost way to get the message out, and in a race where my margin was 229 votes, who's to say that didn't make the difference," Pedersen said.

Pedersen has more than 3,300 friends on his profile, something he attributes to the work of his campaign manager and a volunteer who sent messages to members of his Seattle district.

"When I was doorbelling, I would find people who said, 'I'm your friend on MySpace,' " he said.

In September, developers at Facebook, an online networking site popular among college students, launched their "Election 2006" network, a group of about 1,600 candidate profiles from races around the country.

Campaigns were supplied with login credentials and are responsible for maintaining their profiles, which will be removed after this month's election.

Until then, Facebook users can show which candidates they support or what political issues they're interested in.

"We wanted to do something to increase the political voice of Facebook users, a group that tends to be on the younger side of the electorate and which is often underrepresented in Washington and state capitals," a Facebook spokesperson wrote in an e-mailed statement.

Music, movies, clubs and other products targeted at young people already employ networking sites in their marketing strategies, and although the political world might have finally caught on, there's no evidence that it will be effective unless it's actively incorporated into campaigns.

McGavick has about 160 friends on MySpace, not a lot when you consider that Seattle-based singer-songwriter Rocky Votolato has about 22,800.

But the first of Cantwell's television ads, posted a month ago, had been viewed more than 550 times on YouTube. Not bad, until you consider that a week-old video of a Welsh corgi waddling around on a hardwood floor had attracted more than 1.7 million views.

"The personal stuff isn't hitting critical mass yet," Allen said. "It's true that some people might want to know what the last book Darcy Burner read was, but advertisements are still the driving force."

Still, some evidence exists to back up the claim that on some level, voters like feeling that politicians are open and accessible. One comment left on the MySpace page of Rep. Jim McDermott praises the 69-year-old politician's profile.

"I am glad that you are embracing this form of online communication to meet and hear from your younger constituents, rather than immediately (joining) the ranks to ban it," a young Seattle man wrote.

"MySpace and similar online networking sites and forums are the town squares of the 21st century," his post continued.

"Please urge your fellow Congressmen to keep these sites open and free."